It is important to practice mindfulness on a daily basis, but sometimes it can be hard to get into the right mindset. Use these 2 and 8 minute guided mindfulness moment exercises to help reboot your brain and relax!

2 Minute Mindfulness Moment

Enjoy this simple mindfulness breathing exercise. It is very useful when you’ve had a busy day and are feeling stressed or overloaded and you just need to take a pause before your next task to become present in the here and now.

Close your eyes or just soften your gaze forward, and allow yourself to be still for a moment.

Take a few deep breaths in through the nose and out through the mouth.

There is nowhere to go and nowhere to be so just be here now.

Now just settle into the natural rhythm of the breath, and for the next 30 seconds just follow one breath at a time.

If the mind wanders, just gently bring it back to the breath and be here now.

Noticing the sensation of the breath as the air hits the back of your throat, right here in the present moment.

The breath is always in the present moment which is where you need to be to be at your best.

Take a nice deep breath in, let it go, and come on back.

To end, set an intention for how you want to be for the next thirty minutes of your day.

Enjoy!

8 Minute Mindfulness Moment

Settle in right where you are and take a moment to get connected to your own body. Get your feet grounded on the floor, have a dignified spine and just be here now.

Nowhere to go, nowhere to be, just be in the present moment. Allowing yourself to begin to shut down.

Some of those files that are open in your mind, see if you can focus on the task at hand which is going to be following the breath.

Start by taking a deep breath in through the nose and out through the mouth, feeling that tension at the top as you inhale and noticing the pause at the bottom as you exhale.

Take another deep breath in, noticing that tension, and just letting go and feeling the pause. The pause is where stillness happens.

Now just settle in to the natural rhythm of your breath. For the next 60 seconds you’re just going to follow your breath. If your mind wanders, just gently bring it back to the breath.

Now we’re going to shift the attention to the sensation of the breath. Noticing the breath coming in and out of the body and the rise and fall of the chest.

Notice the sensation of the air as it hits the back of your throat, becoming more connected and more aware of the present moment.

Now we are going to shift that attention to the body, and you’re going to scan down from the top of your head to your toes just noticing any physical sensations. Scanning down through the body for those physical sensations and now notice your mood. Notice the sensation in your fingertips, notice that they’re throbbing. They always have been, just the attention is in a different place now.

Now just follow your breath again. For the next 60 seconds you’re just going to focus on following your breath. If your mind wanders, just gently bring it back to your breath.

Now just let your mind go wherever it wants to go. No need to direct it, just let it go.

Focus back on that breath, take a deep breath in and out, start to wiggle your hands and feet back in this moment, and just take a moment to appreciate the space that you have created for yourself. Thanking yourself for the work that you’ve done, thanking yourself for the discipline, and putting in the time so that you can become a better version of yourself.

Take a nice deep breath in, let it go, open your eyes, and have a great day.